Automated testing

usc_lax9 · Jul 22, 2014

Me and my teenage son want to start a 55 gallon live coral tank. We are really into the idea except for the weekly testing as we are not the most consistent off people. Feeding is no problem and testing that is less common does not have tone automated. Thank you any feed back would be great

usc_lax9 · Jul 22, 2014

Sorry about the grammar/spelling,auto correct

Pete polyp · Jul 22, 2014

Reefkeeping may not be for you then. It requires lots of attention and plenty of discipline. More than likely if you did set up you would become excited and more involved than you might think you would.

saltyphish · Jul 22, 2014

agreed its a necessity. Some of the controllers have probes that can test for specific things such as ph, orp, and salinity to name a few but they are expensive and you will still need to test for other things plu calibrate the probes periodically.

reefwiser · Jul 22, 2014

Probes require maintenance also. All testing equipment needs to be checked for proper working condition's at least once a month.
In Europe there is a company call Triton Labs that test the water you send into them and tells you what to dose your tank to keep it
healthy. But they have not expanded to the US yet.
Triton Reef Elementz and Triton Lab water testing are a revolution in reefing chemistry

psidriven · Jul 22, 2014

Don't be put off testing. It's pretty easy once you've done it a few times. I also thought I won't do it, but it became second nature like brushing or flossing.

Another option is go softies and do regular weekly water changes.

racoloish · Jul 22, 2014

You can talk to your LFS and ask them to test your water. Sometimes they give a bottle for that and maybe is free in your area. Where I live they test the water for free.

sk8elenex92 · Jul 22, 2014

You don't nec. Have to test to every week. I test once a month near doing my water change. In the beginning yes you will test much more to watch the cycle and once it's done you just check here and there.

lmccluer · Jul 23, 2014

Once you get your tank up and running, you can almost by sight and smell can tell where your tank is as far as parameters and not have to test as often. However, especially if you go reef with fish and live rock you will have to get to the point where all your parameters are steady and/or controlled by dosing. As said before, once you get into it and do it a couple times, it isn't that big of a deal. 10-20 minutes and your done.

JReefaddict · Jul 24, 2014

I rarely test my water. Pretty much only if I catch something that doesn't look right but usually the water is pretty straight down the line. I do weekly water changes as well, no dosing on a mixed reef

joeyhatch11 · Jul 24, 2014

There is a monitor I seen on line some time ago that was $300, that would monitor pH, calcium, Alk and Magnesium. I don't remember if it was on MarineDepot or BulkReefSupplies website. I just did a quick search and I cant seem to find it. But I do recall seeing on that monitors the bulk of what you'll need to look after.

lmccluer · Jul 30, 2014

There are several controllers on the market that test ph, temp, and salinity. There is even one that will give a par reading. As well they can control lights, pumps, auto top off, can detect water leaks and a lot more. The main talked about ones are Apex and Reefkeeper. The are a handful of other ones, including one with Vertex I believe. With this fancy electronics comes a big price tag, anywhere between $300-$700 and more depending what a you add to the system. The best thing to do is Google aquarium controllers or see if you can find forums specifically to the Apex or Reefkeeper.